Leadership Development Training Programme for Social Work Team Leaders working in Family and Child Care

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This project is part financed by the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund through the INTERREG IVA Cross Border Programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body

Leadership Development Training Programme for Social Work Team Leaders

working in Family and Child Care

Outline Programme

1. Leading Complex Practice

The effectiveness of first line leadership is critical to the success of any organisation. It has the most direct impact on the service quality that is provided. In Family and Child Care, first line leaders have to combine high standards of professional capability with a range of leadership skills to direct, develop and motivate others including staff, peers and parents.

These include the competences of empowering staff, holding others to account, leading change through people, collaborative working and strategic influencing. Personal qualities such as self-belief, self awareness, self management, a drive for improvement and personal integrity are essential to leadership in terms of emotional resilience, relationship

development and motivating staff.

The context of Family and Child Care services is complex and fast moving. First line leaders have to make decisions, under operational pressures and with often incomplete real time information, yet which are subject to scrutiny against statutory, professional and regulatory standards.

Family and Child Care practice cannot rely simply on ‘rules’ to guide decision making

(Morrison, 2010). Leaders need to facilitate knowledge based practice which is informed by a range of sources and evidence. This should be used to support decision making, develop staff, influence strategy and build productive professional practice.

This programme is designed to enable leaders to develop and apply coaching skills with their staff to raise self awareness, facilitate learning through the job, challenge thinking, critique decision making and take on responsibility for action. It is informed by the issues raised in a consultation workshop with Team Leaders in January 2010. Investment in team leader development and the creation of peer support relationships were highlighted as key priorities.

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The programme has been commissioned by CAWT to develop the leadership capability of first line managers in these areas. The programme is expected to deliver a range of benefits:

a) At an individual level: increased confidence and more effective performance of the team leader role through the development of “leader as coach” skills and tools. b) At a service level: increased ability of first line managers to combine their

professional accountability and developmental role with staff to improve service delivery and decision making.

c) An organisational/system level: the creation of a supportive peer leadership network which crosses service, organisational and jurisdiction boundaries to accelerate the sharing of knowledge, experience and ideas.

2. Approach

The programme has been developed around four themes:

a) Creating a leadership culture of challenge and support to bring out the best in others b) Developing critical thinking and questioning skills to support decision making

c) Leading “on the run”: prioritising, planning and organising

d) Taking responsibility, holding boundaries and managing key relationships in the wider system with integrity

The programme will run from January – May 2010. There will be two cohorts:

 Western Health & Social Care Trust / HSE West

 Southern Health & Social Care Trust / HSE Dublin North East

Prior to the programme commencement participants must complete and bring to day 1 of the programme the following documents:

a) Personal goal setting for the programme with their line manager

b) Preferably a completed Personal Development Plan (PDP) or have had a

conversation with your line manager identifying your goals for the programme.

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HSC participants to complete NISCC Post Registration Training & Learning Record

Both of these will be ‘before and after’ indicators of progress for participants and inform the programme evaluation.

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PROGRAMME OVERVIEW

Engagement January 2011

Creating the Space February 2011

Sharpening the Thinking March 2011

Targeting the Effort April 2011

Holding the Boundary May 2011

Challenge & support culture Peer coaching Network formation Value creation

Powerful questioning Surface to deep

thinking

Knowledge based questioning Exploring what’s

missing

Self-management Delegation

without guilt Clarifying

priorities Support tools Simplifying and

streamling work style

Defining responsibility Confronting and

accountability Power and influence Contracting with line

manager

Application 2011 and

beyond

Pre-Programme

 Goal setting

 Starting point assessment

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3. Indicative Programme Content

The programme content is set out in the table below:

STAGE OBJECTIVES METHOD / CONTENT DATES / VENUE

1. Engagement  Participants agree development goals with line manager

 Participants commit to dates

 Participants complete a self assessment against key

competences for the programme

 Personal

development goals accessed online, printed, signed and copy posted to A McMurray and CAWT Project Manager

 Online self

assessment against leadership

competences and network strengths

Before 31st Jan 2011

2. Creating the space

 Engage participants as a learning network

 Create a ‘challenge and support’ culture for the programme

 Develop peer coaching skills

 Network analysis and development

 Speed introductions / fishbowl

 Social discipline model

 Coaching input

 Peer coaching practice and feedback on real issues

 Network assessment and action planning

Redeemer Family Resource Centre, Dundalk – 2nd Feb 11 Public Services Building, Donegal Town – 3rd Feb 11

3. Sharpening the thinking

 Critical questions to support decision making

 Powerful questions to elicit and develop thinking

 Team questions to strengthen thinking and problem solving

 Skills practice and feedback

 Exploring what is not being said – spotting the gaps using knowledge

 Practice use of a range of critical and powerful questioning techniques using different styles and pace

 Application to real issues with peers to obtain feedback and develop skills

 Personal question checklist

development for supervision sessions

 Surface to deep meaning

St Columb’s Park House, Derry – 8th March 11 Ballybot House, Newry – 9th March 11

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 Explore use of metaphor, symbols and the ‘shadow’

4. Targeting the effort

 Improve self management

 Use of job support tools

 Delegate without guild

 Practicing solution focussed thinking

 Eliminating energy drainers

 Self-assessment of personal

organisation

 Domain mapping – setting priorities

 Resources inventory

 I’m ok / you’re ok mindset

 Planning delegation and use of job supports

 Saying now and making choices on the run

Public Services Building, Donegal Town – 5th April 11 Redeemer Family Resource Centre, Dundalk - 6th April 11

5. Holding the Boundary

 Clarifying areas of core responsibility

 Mapping by

relationships and use of influence in the wider system

 Maximising personal power for benefit of the team

 Contracting for support from line manager

 Control / influence / accept circle

 Relationship dynamic map

 Action plan in relation to priorities

 Understanding and mobilising sources of power

 Engaging line

manager support for future planning

St Columb’s Park House, Derry – 10th_{May 11}

Ballybot House, Newry – 11th May 11

4 Staffing

Anne McMurray will design and deliver the training in conjunction with the CAWT steering group and representatives from each of the partners.

Anne McMurray, BSSc. MSW. MSc. MBE.

Anne McMurray is an independent trainer, specialising in leadership and team development, strategy formulation and change implementation. She combines a focus on the people side of organisations with the realities of sustaining performance in a complex and changing world.

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Her company specialises in strategic leadership and team development. Their work is based on best practice research and provides customised designs for organisations. The purpose is to strengthen the quality of leadership at all levels so that organisations are successful, are positive places for people to work and develop in and that they create value for society.

She draws on career experience which has included youth and community work, family therapy, health and social service senior management and organisational development consultancy through Ireland, GB, Europe and Canada since 1989.

Anne was corporate change executive in South and East Belfast Trust 1996-2000 leading organisation wide process reengineering and culture change projects. Anne is an associate trainer with the Centre for Creative Leadership in Brussels and is a practitioner with Cognitive Edge, a knowledge network specialising in working with complex organisational systems.

Anne’s client base is north and south of Ireland as well as England, particularly in the areas of health and social services, NGOs, housing, education and local government, as well as with private sector clients. In a voluntary capacity Anne is chair of the East Belfast Partnership and chair of México Child Link Trust. In 2008 Anne was awarded the MBE in recognition of her work in women’s enterprise and leadership in Northern Ireland.

For more information please see www.annemcmurray.com

Programme Management

Marianne Walsh is the CAWT Workforce Mobility Project Manager. Marianne will:

 be the point of contact for participants,

 arrange venues and hospitality,

 organise logistics,

 print and prepare materials. Contact Details

Marianne Walsh, Workforce Mobility Project Manager, 0044 (0) 28 71 272100

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Arrangements for bringing in additional inputs will be confirmed and integrated into the programme with roles and responsibilities clarified with Anne McMurray. Programmes will be sent to participants two weeks prior to events.